


Lessons Learned

by orchardpotato



Category: Batman vs. Robin (2015), Batman: Bad Blood (2016), Justice League vs. Teen Titans (2016), Son of Batman (2014), Teen Titans: The Judas Contract (2017)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:34:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,188
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27099685
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orchardpotato/pseuds/orchardpotato
Summary: Damian defined himself by his failures. Perhaps one day he'll learn to overcome them.A reflection on how Damian has grown through his past mistakes.
Relationships: Damian Wayne & Bruce Wayne, Robin & Batman, Teen Titans & Damian Wayne
Kudos: 12





	Lessons Learned

From the moment he was born, Damian Wayne was groomed for greatness. His entire future planned out before he could even talk. At his grandfather’s side, he would make the world better, stronger, by any means necessary. There was no question that he would meet the high standards set for him, his grandfather and mother expected no less. He expected no less from himself. 

So when he encountered his first true failure, being unable to save his grandfather, it felt like a punch to the gut. From that point on, his failures began to pile up in ways that he never expected. 

When he first met Batman, his father, he couldn’t help but admire him. He was intimidating, intelligent, extremely self-sufficient. Qualities that were valued within the League of Assassins. He quickly realized that he could benefit from his father’s tutelage and, despite his attitude, strove to be a worthy pupil. At first, he tried to impress Batman with his skills and prove to him that he was already well-advanced in terms of combat and intellect. 

This, however, backfired. Damian was repeatedly reprimanded for his choices and actions in the field, repeatedly scolded like a child for being too brash or impulsive or ruthless. So he tried to internalize the lessons Batman was working to instill in him. But despite his best efforts, when he began to alter his behavior and follow Batman’s doctrine of justice instead of vengeance, it still didn’t seem to be enough. As a result, he soon began to feel bitter. He told himself that he didn’t need his father’s praise and approval. And he slightly, but noticeably, reverted to his League of Assassins training. 

Then, driven by his resentment, he made the severe, shameful mistake of trusting Talon and revealing his identity to the Court of Owls, unintentionally betraying his father’s identity as well. When that fiasco was resolved, much to his surprise it was his father who apologized. But it was too confusing, he was too conflicted. The mark of his failures was burdensome and Damian needed space to reevaluate his role as Robin.

His time with the monks provided some much-needed clarity. While it was cut short due to his father’s disappearance, he had come to the realization that he still wanted to be Robin. And he hoped that he would be given the chance to redeem himself. Over time, Batman began to trust him as Robin again and small words of validation were dropped here and there. But he soon realized that those moments became fewer and further-between the longer he fought alongside Batman. His choices continued to be questioned and he could see that he was being constantly scrutinized and evaluated. He knew that his father would never forget the transgression he made and Damian doubted that he would ever rise to the status of a fully trustworthy partner.

Feeling as though he failed to be the best Robin, he instead worked toward being the best son. He earned top marks at school, which honestly took minimal effort. He attended every fancy Wayne event without complaint and endeavored to put on the sociable and amiable façade that his father wore, though this proved to be far more difficult. On the rare occasion that his father would initiate a leisurely activity together, he made sure to show his enthusiasm or appreciation. When the world thought it lost Superman, one of Batman’s closest teammates, he tried to comfort his father as best he could. But no matter how hard Damian tried, that father-son relationship did not fully form. Most of his father’s time was spent as Batman with Bruce Wayne falling by the wayside. Thus, the opportunities to show he was a dedicated son were scarce.

Then he was sent away to the Titans. At first he viewed it as a punishment, Batman’s way of showing that he had had enough of him and preferred to work alone. While that may have been partially true, he still wasn’t sure, he now knew that the main purpose was to learn how to work with a team. But even then his failures followed him. 

On his second day at the Tower he arrogantly underestimated Beetle’s suit’s capabilities and nearly died in his attempt to show his superiority. He put a strain on his relationships with his teammates before they even had a chance to form. At the very least he recognized the need to acknowledge his mistake and apologized, in his own aloof way. That had to be some form of progress, right? However, not even a week later, he was unable to save his father during the Titans’ fight with the Leaguers corrupted by Trigon. Further, he failed to prevent Raven from summoning Trigon to Earth, leading to a moderate amount of destruction. In the end, he did manage to save her from being slaughtered by his grandfather, or maybe it was a demon. Anyway, it allowed her the time to trap Trigon in the crystal. Surely that made up for his previous failure.

But then there was Terra. She infiltrated the Titans, collecting personal data and working with Deathstroke to bring down the team from the very beginning. And for nearly a year he didn’t suspect a thing! On top of that, he allowed himself to be captured and was unable to warn the Titans of Terra’s treachery. He had let his guard down and it nearly cost him his entire team. While no one blamed him for these mistakes, he still blamed himself for not recognizing the threat sooner.

The weight of all these failures continued to haunt him. Self-forgiveness was an alien concept that he had not even begun to explore. Truthfully, he wasn’t ready to delve into that kind of introspection.

Fortunately, his time with the Titans and their baffling capacity for understanding helped him develop a somewhat different perspective. Yes, his past mistakes played in the back of his mind from time to time, but he no longer defined himself by them. He began to accept that, at least with the Titans, he didn’t need to spend all his time trying to redeem himself. That didn’t mean would give anything less than his best as Robin, far from it, but he recognized that he was not solely responsible for the setbacks that impacted the team. He did not need to be perfect one hundred percent of the time and he could rely on the Titans in the field. 

Most importantly, his teammates wouldn’t treat him differently if he made a mistake. As annoying as Starfire’s speeches were about learning and growing as a team, he saw that there was truth in her words. And while he would never say it aloud, he was grateful for that. 

Damian had come a long way from the rigid perfectionism of his childhood. With the continued support from his team, perhaps he would one day be able to fully detach himself from the shame and guilt derived from his past failures. At the very least, for the first time, he allowed himself to hope that he would make it there someday.

**Author's Note:**

> So this is my first complete fanfic! I loved Damian's development throughout the DCAMU and I wanted to explore how he was shaped by different relationships and events. Hope you all enjoyed it!


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